methodoly_20082009

The STeHPS Methodology Seminar series aims to foster methodological debate and mutual learning in the field of science, technology, and innovation studies (STIS). The seminar is offered to STeHPS PhD students; other research staff is cordially invited to contribute. The seminar is also open to other UT groups working in the field of STIS and related themes. The Center for Higher Education Policy Studies (CHEPS) has expressed particular interest in contributing to the seminar.

Seminar sessions take place about every 6 weeks (except vacation periods), usually on Wednesday.

Time: 10.00-12.00 h.

Venue: Capitool, C-009

Format: One or two prepared presentations of 15-25 minutes, followed by an open discussion.

You find an updated seminar programmebelow.

For any suggestion concerning content and procedures of the seminar please contact:Prof. dr. Stefan Kuhlmann; Chair Foundations of Science, Technology and Society; School of Management and Governance; s.kuhlmann@utwente.nl; www.mb.utwente.nl/stehps/

Programme 2008-2009:

Date

Presentation

Description

24 October 2007

Martin Ruivenkamp (STeHPS)

Visualising the invisible nanoscale and use of participating observation and questionnaires

Assessment of achievement of Methodology Seminar so far – identification of lacunae, selection of method. issues for future treatment

18 June

Frank van der Most and Haico te Kulve(STeHPS)

Comparative research; Contrasting cases

17 September

Ben Kokkeler (STeHPS)

Adopting Pettigrew's & Giddens' advice in conducting reflective action research on university transformation and open innovation

26 November

Haico te Kulve (STeHPS)

Lessons from and for writing an academic paper

2009

11 February

Arend Zomer (CHEPS)

The impacts of spin-off companies on the research activities of public research organisations in the Netherlands

Abstract:

This PhD project focuses on the question what the impacts are of spin-off companies on the public research organisations PROs they originate from. In my work I do not merely focus on the direct impacts of spin-offs on their parent research organisations but I choose to see the creation of spin-off companies and the interactions with spin-off companies by research organisations as part of an institutional environment that increasingly stresses the importance of knowledge transfer and active commercialisation of scientific research. Therefore, part of the research also focuses on the responses of PROs to their environment and the way the presence of spin-off companies is utilised by PROs.

I would like to discuss some key methodological challenges in my research. The data for this project was collected in an early stage of my PhD in an EU sixth framework project called ProKnow. The same research was conducted in six other EU countries. In the past years my PhD has taken form and the questions in my research sometimes exceed the data that was collected in the ProKnow project. Additionally, the sampling logic of the ProKnow design needs to be justified for my PhD project.